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Bake · American

Banana bread

Brown-spotted bananas, brown sugar, brown butter (if you're paying attention).

90 min 20 min hands-on Serves 10 American Kid friendly

Banana bread is a moist, tender loaf that turns overripe bananas into something delicious. The riper and browner the bananas, the sweeter and more flavourful the bread. It is forgiving, easy, and a reliable bake for using up fruit past its best.

Ingredients

  • 4 ripe bananas, heavily brown-spotted, about 400g peeled
  • 120 g butter, plus a little for the tin
  • 150 g brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 220 g plain flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp cinnamon
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 80 g walnuts, roughly chopped (optional)

Method

  1. Heat the oven to 170°C (150°C fan). Grease a 900g (2lb) loaf tin and line it with baking paper, leaving some overhanging so you can lift the loaf out.
  2. Melt the butter in a small pan over a medium heat, 2 to 3 minutes. For a nuttier loaf, keep swirling until the foam settles, the specks turn golden brown and it smells nutty, 3 to 5 minutes more. It burns fast from there, so pour it straight into a large bowl, then cool for 5 minutes so it cannot scramble the eggs.
  3. Mash the bananas on a plate with a fork until mostly smooth, with a few small lumps. The darker the skins, the sweeter the loaf. Whisk the sugar into the butter, then the eggs one at a time, the vanilla and the bananas.
  4. Sift (or whisk together in a small bowl) the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt, add to the bowl and fold with a spatula only until no dry flour is left. A lumpy batter is fine; overmixing makes a tough, rubbery loaf. Fold in the walnuts, if using.
  5. Scrape into the tin and level the top. Bake on the middle shelf for 55 to 65 minutes, until risen and deep golden and a skewer in the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs. If the top is already deep brown after about 40 minutes, lay foil loosely over it.
  6. Cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then lift out onto a rack and leave to cool completely, at least 1 hour, before slicing. It cuts more cleanly then, and the flavour deepens overnight.
  7. Serve in thick slices as it is, or toasted with butter, alongside a cup of tea or coffee. Wrapped well it keeps for 3 days, or freeze slices for up to 3 months.

Tips

  • Use very ripe, spotty bananas, as they are sweeter and mash more smoothly into the batter.
  • Do not overmix once the flour goes in, since overworking makes the loaf tough.
  • If the top browns before the centre is set, loosely tent it with foil for the last ten minutes.

Common questions

Can I use frozen bananas?

Yes, thaw them first and drain off some of the liquid. They mash easily and are often even sweeter than fresh.

Why is my banana bread dense?

Usually from overmixing or too much banana. Mix just until combined and measure your bananas so the batter is not too wet.